


just for this moment, darling

by tieriaerde (orphan_account)



Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Canon, Trauma, no beta reading we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-21
Updated: 2020-03-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:14:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23239039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/tieriaerde
Summary: so won't you hold me?so i can forget my sorrowsthe burden's heavy and the world gets hard to shoulder on my ownand it grows-Every human has their breaking point. Every hero has their breaking point.It was only a matter of time before Lio Fotia reached his. Luckily, he's not alone, and he never will be.
Relationships: Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos
Kudos: 61





	just for this moment, darling

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this fic in the span of a day and then continually forgot to actually post it for a week. social distancing will do that to a person. cheers. also if there are any verb tense errors I Am So Fucking Sorry, i impulsively changed it from present to past tense at the last minute and i have this terrible nagging feeling that i missed at least one verb. lmk if i did in the comments lmao
> 
> (title/desc. from the fire by former vandal)

The second time Galo that saw Lio cry was in his apartment.

It had been just under a week since the arrest of Kray Foresight. Rescue efforts, finding housing and food and employment for former Mad Burnish, trying to learn how to navigate a life without firefighters or Burnish or Governor Foresight —

It was all just a little too much. Galo and Lio had been at the front lines of all of it, working long hours without rest or time to even stop to breathe. On that night, Galo came home after a long day, half-asleep on his feet, and the door was halfway open when he heard a quiet, choked sob.

He tossed his jacket on the ground instead of hanging it up on the coat rack and pushed the door all the way open. "Lio?" He was in rescue mode, eyes flickering across the room until he spotted a hint of Lio's mint green hair peeking out from a bundle of blankets on his bed.

He was by his side in seconds. "Lio, what's wrong? Are you hurt?" He knelt down and looked up into Lio's eyes. They were red, and the dark circles under them seemed to only have grown darker since the last time they'd seen each other.

Lio shook his head. "I —" He breathed in, shaky and unsteady. Galo inhaled with him, trying not to cry, too. "I'm — okay —"

"You're not," Galo said softly. "Here. Here, I've got you." He sat down on the bed next to Lio and pulled him into a hug. He didn't protest, seeming too out of breath and energy to try. "It's okay. You're gonna be okay. You're safe. I'm here. I'm here." He brushed long, tangled locks of hair out of Lio's face and pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek. "You can rest now, I've got you."

Several minutes passed before Lio was able to quiet down. He leaned into Galo's touch, resting his head against his shoulder and pressing hands against his chest. "I'm tired," he mumbled.

"I know," Galo said. "Me too."

"I should be happy." His hands curled into fists. "He's gone, and we're all free, and he can't hurt us anymore, but I — I —" His voice trembled.

"I know," Galo said again. "We didn't even get time to be happy. We just... there's still so much to do. He left behind a whole system dedicated to killing the Burnish."

"...Yeah. And now I..." Lio looked down at his hands. "I feel like I've lost a part of myself. I feel like I've lost  _ all _ of myself. I don't know who I am without the Promare."

"You're Lio Fotia," Galo said without a moment's hesitation, "leader of the Mad Burnish. You're kind, and righteous, and beautiful, and you're braver than anyone I know. None of that has changed."

Lio was quiet. "I'm cold all the time." He sounded like porcelain about to shatter. "That never used to happen before. And it's such a little thing, but it... it feels so much like my body isn't mine anymore." A huff of quiet laughter escaped him. "I thought that I was done with feeling this way after I transitioned."

Gently, Galo took Lio's hand in his own. "I understand," he said. "I... I get that dysphoria, too, I really do. Not in the way that you're feeling now, but..."

Lio squeezed his hand. He squeezed back. "Thanks," Lio said softly. "For... being here. And for everything else."

"Always." He let go of Lio, just for a second, to wipe his tears on his sleeve. "And I know it's not the same, and it never will be the same, but... if the cold gets to be too much, I'll... I mean, I'm here. I'll be here. If you need me."

There was the faintest hint of a smile on his face when he said, "You'll warm me up with your  _ burning firefighter soul, _ is that what you're saying?"

He laughed. "I guess that is what I'm saying, isn't it?" He planted another kiss on Lio's cheek. "I hope it'll suffice."

"It'll do," he said, and then he paused. "What time is it?"

"Uh — ?" Galo looked down at his wrist. "It's 2:23 in the morning. Why d'you ask?"

"Oh." Lio let go of Galo's hand and shifted his body weight, ready to get off of the bed. "I... I should go," he said hesitantly. "Gueira and Meis might need me, I didn't mean to take so long of a break —"

"Lio," Galo said. "How long have you been working? How much sleep have you gotten this week?"

"They need my help out there." His voice was suddenly harsh and bordering on frantic as he stood up. "I don't have time for this. There are people relying on me, Galo, I can't let them down again —"

"You're not letting them down," he insisted. "You need to rest." He reaches to grab Lio's wrist —

Lio snapped back, slapping Galo's hand away. "Don't _ touch me. _ "

Every thought in his mind ground to a halt. He recoiled immediately. "Oh,  _ shit _ , Lio, I'm so sorry, I wasn't thinking, I —"

Lio clutched his wrist as if Galo's touch had cut him. His glare was full of hurt and exhaustion and fear.

"I'm sorry," Galo said again. "Please stay, Lio. You're going to hurt yourself. You're overworked, and, and you're making rash decisions, and..."

"People need me." His breaths were growing shallow. "I don't have time to rest. I don't —"

"Lio!" He stood up and reached towards Lio before thinking better of it and pulling his hands back to his chest. "You're going to have a panic attack at this rate. You  _ need _ to give yourself a break. You're of no use to the people who need you if you're running on fumes.  _ Listen _ , Lio, you're allowed to rest. There's nothing you need to make up for. You've done everything right, I promise."

There was a beat of silence, and then another, and then the silence was pierced by a near-silent hiccup. Lio started crying for the second time that night.

Galo felt every feature on his face soften in an instant. "Come here," he said. "Can I hold you?"

Lio took in a deep, shuddering breath, and he nodded. He took a few steps forward and Galo closed the distance, wrapping Lio in his arms and guiding him to sit back down on the bed. "I'm sorry I grabbed you."

Lio shook his head. "It's..." His tears swallowed up the words he was trying to say.

"It's not fine," Galo said. "I'm... dammit, I'm ashamed of myself. I should've known it'd trigger you. I'm an idiot."

Lio mumbled something into his chest that sounded vaguely like  _ my idiot _ . Galo could barely find the energy to laugh, but he did — except suddenly, he was crying too. Lio looked up, alarmed, but he shook his head. "No, I — I'm okay, don't —"

"Wh — what's wrong?" Lio's voice was strained. "Did I —"

"No, don't — it wasn't — don't force yourself to talk, I just, I — I'm —" He shook his head again. "I'm really tired."

Lio's face went soft with understanding. He wrapped his arms around Galo's shoulders and squeezed lightly. "Yeah," he said quietly. "Me too."

It was a few more minutes before either of them were in a state to talk again. "I'm sorry I'm being so weird tonight," Lio said. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"No, it's okay," Galo sighed. "You were overwhelmed, and I was being loud, and I scared you. Like I said, I just... shouldn't have grabbed you."

"It's not that big of a deal," he mumbled into Galo's shoulder. "I overreacted."

"Hey." Galo's voice was hushed and gentle, but it carried a certain fierceness all the same. "Don't say that. You weren't overreacting. We're both really stressed out, okay? A lot has happened. And I know... I know being grabbed like that reminds you of —"  _ Burnish screams, ice around your wrists, your fingers turning to ash before your time _ . "Yeah. I get it, alright, Lio? You don't have to downplay your trauma for me, or for anyone. You deserve to feel safe. I messed up. I'll take the blame for that, and it won't happen again, alright? I promise."

He breathed in and out shakily. "I —" He had to stop speaking to catch his breath. Galo ran his fingers gently through his hair. "I'm sorry I keep crying so much. I don't really know why I'm so..."

"You don't have to apologize for feeling," Galo said. "You've been really stressed out for... well, for forever, but this week especially. After everything that's happened, of course you're gonna be emotional and messed up about a lot of stuff."

"But I..." He made an exasperated noise in the back of his throat. "I'm not supposed to be like this. I'm supposed to be better."

"No, you're not. You're not "supposed to be" anything, Lio." Galo leaned back to look him in the eye. "You're human, remember? You need to eat and sleep and rest and feel just like anyone else. You're amazing, but you're not invincible."

"Yeah, I... I guess. But I'm..." Lio shrugged and averted his gaze. "It's a simple fact that I'm more resilient and more level-headed than a lot, if not all of the other Burnish. That's why I was their leader. Don't I have a responsibility to... to be better than this?"

Galo placed a hand on Lio's cheek. He looked back up at him. "You don't have a responsibility to do  _ anything _ . All you've gotta do is be the best you can at any given moment."

He scowled, looking frustrated. "But this  _ isn't _ my —"

"When I say  _ the best you can _ ," Galo said sternly, "I don't mean that that has to look the same every day. Sometimes the best you can do is go out and rescue people from rubble and bring people back to life and beat up government officials to fight for your freedom, and sometimes the best you can do is  _ wake up and get out of bed. _ And this is the best you can do today, alright? You've done enough."

"It doesn't feel like it," Lio muttered.

"I understand. Just try to be patient with yourself, okay? You've been through a lot." Galo leaned down to kiss Lio on the forehead. "You don't have to carry the weight of the entire world on your own. You're a person, too. You deserve to be happy just as much as every one of your siblings."

"It's hard," he said. "I still feel like we're all in danger. There are so many Burnish without a home to return to, and those that do have someplace to go... it could be miles away."

"It's not your problem to fix," Galo reminded him. "You can help — you  _ should  _ help. But not at the expense of your own health. I don't want you getting sick, and neither do Gueira and Meis and every other Burnish who loves you.  _ They love you,  _ Lio. Don't sacrifice your health for them. They'd understand."

"I know that, but I..." Lio shook his head. "There's a difference between knowing that something is true and truly believing it, Galo. I just don't think I'm ready to cross that line yet."

"Okay," he said. "I get that. We don't have to keep talking about it if you don't want to. But... try, at least. Can you stay the night? You should sleep."

Lio was quiet for a few moments. "Yeah," he finally said. "I'll stay." Carefully, gently, he pulled away from Galo's embrace and took off his hoodie, tossing it on the ground next to Galo's jacket. He pulled the blankets back over himself and laid down on the bed. Galo laid down next to him.

They were both quiet. Lio glanced away from Galo's face as he asked, "If I fall asleep, will you still be here when I wake up?"

Galo took Lio's hand in his and kissed it. "Of course."

"Good," he murmured, and his eyes slipped shut. And Galo laid there with him, memorizing every detail of Lio's peaceful expression until he fell asleep beside him.

**Author's Note:**

> follow me on twt @tieriakin


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